A Little Bird Told Me
by ohmoveoveralohomora
Summary: Delia Bones has always regarded Harry Potter and his friends as a reckless trio in search of trouble. But when the three Undesirables disappear on a quest to vanquish You Know Who, Delia and her friends face their sixth year at Hogwarts without the saviour of the Wizarding World. Join this shy Ravenclaw in the DA's fight from inside, under the rule of Snape and the Carrows.
1. Humble Beginnings

PROLOGUE - _Humble Beginnings_

I have always loved books.

From the first time I can recall being read to and my clumsy words as I first puzzled out the markings on each page, I loved them. And when I found that these wads of parchment could not only hold stories, but infinite knowledge as well, my mum couldn't tear me away from some volume or another - it was different each time she entered my room of recluse - for nearly a month afterwards.

I was not what they call smart, and yet I was a bookworm. I could not always remember exactly what I had read a week ago, but what else were books for if I could not go back and check the particular tidbit of information?

I was not a fast reader, but I spent so much time reading that many mistook me for a person who could devour a novel in a few hours.

I was not like the intelligent authors who wrote these masterpieces, but I would claim quite humbly that I was the best, most devoted reader.

I often wondered what it would be like, to be so glorious as to have a book written about myself. Or to have such an imagination that I could weave a tale from my own mind. I admit, neither of these things have or ever will come to occur, but I did find in my life enough second-hand adventure, mystery and intrigue to write my own little story. And though I cannot claim anything like what the heroes of my generation have done, I am quite sure that I can give you a very different and hopefully rather entertaining perspective of the great events which concluded the last century.

* * *

I was born Delia Lucy Bones to my pureblood mother Celeste and halfblood father Findley. My dad had gingery hair, brown eyes and gangly limbs, whereas my mum had light brown hair, twinkling green eyes and a fuller figure.

My sister, Susan, was eighteen months older than me and my idol from the ages of three through to eleven. She had long red hair which she frequently wore in a long plait down her back and freckles around her nose.

My hair was a darker red than hers, which my dad liked to compare to a carrot to tease her, but so thick and with the most annoying slight wave which meant it looked ridiculous just about any way except for in a simple ponytail. I didn't have freckles like my dad either, but I was much shorter than Susan and didn't look like growing very much at all.

We grew up together in a cosy house near Surrey, playing games together and Susan dressing her dolls whilst I read. My dad owned the broom shop in Diagon Alley and each morning he would step into our fireplace as it glowed green and vanish in a whoosh of flames to his beloved stall. He was a fair flier, but no one could match his knowledge and understanding of brooms. He was even working as a consultant to one of the biggest crafting companies and was back then helping make a new Nimbus broom.

Neither of us could fly, as the highly dense muggle neighbourhood didn't allow for practice and Susan was afraid of heights, but my dad had promised me a broom for my twelfth birthday to use in my second year at Hogwarts if I didn't get into too much trouble as a first-year.

When we were little, our mum stayed home to look after us, but once we could be enrolled at the local muggle primary school she went back to her job as a scribe for the Wizengamot. In the playground at school I would often wave shyly to my sister and she would grin back or even come over and give me a hug. She was - and still is - the nicest person I know and so no one was surprised when after receiving her letter and boarding the train to Hogwarts, she was Sorted into Hufflepuff, where both of my parents had been when they were at school.

My last year at primary school was very different without Susan. I was forced to become less dependent on my big sister and I found my voice a little, where before I had been too shy and nervous to speak. I still avoided confrontations and felt exceedingly awkward in some social situations, but by the time it was my turn to get aboard the Hogwarts Express my sister was no longer the perfect person I'd thought her to be and I didn't need her so much.

I was so nervous when Professor McGonagall placed the Sorting Hat on my head that I nearly sat on my hands to stop them from shaking. The Hat was kind and helpful in its own way, however.

'Bones, yes ... Your sister made a lovely Hufflepuff, going very well there ...' Its voice trailed off and I could hear thoughtful noises as it mulled me over.

'Are - are you going to put me in Hufflepuff?' I whispered. Hufflepuff was safe - I knew I'd be welcome and Susan has said everyone was so nice and if it was good enough for my parents then it was good enough for me, right?

'I see kindness, and loyalty, yes - but not a Gryffindor, no.' I shivered at the thought of being Sorted into the house of red and gold. Bravery and chivalry? It terrified me to bits. I was an introvert and, well, not so proud but who cared?

'I do see a love of learning, discovery,' the Hat continued. 'How do you feel about Ravenclaw?' I mulled it over in my head.

'Do they have books?' I asked timidly. A strange sensation tingles through me - the Hat was laughing.

'I suppose they do, although I have never been into the Ravenclaw Common Room,' it chuckled. 'So, are we decided?' I had to admit, yellow had never been my favourite colour. And the blue and bronze eagle seemed so much more, well, dignified than the badger.

'Yes, thank you,' I replied softly to the Hat, which took in a deep breath and crowed to the Hall so loudly that I jumped so high the Hat nearly flew off my head.

'RAVENCLAW!' I passed the Hat with shaking hands back to Professor McGonagall and blushed furiously as the blue table clapped pleasantly while I made my way over to the blue-tied students. Before I say down next to an absolutely perfect fifth-year prefect named Laura Cummings, I managed to catch my sister's eye and sighed in relief when she smiled genuinely at me.

I knew she wasn't the sort of person to hold a grudge but it felt better knowing that she didn't resent me for breaking a sort of family tradition by joining Ravenclaw.

Laura asked me kindly about what I was looking forward to and I stammered out a few replies, but she was so pretty and nice that I felt intimidated even though she was trying to make me feel better. I was just too shy and nervous for my own good.

Four more girls and five boys were Sorted into Ravenclaw after me, and I ended up sitting in between Laura and one of the other first-years, May Sunnerling, and across from another boy my age called Luke Clearwater.

Laura had told us that Luke's older sister was the Head Girl (Head Boy was a Gryffindor called Percy Weasley) but Luke didn't seem to think this was very important and preferred chatting about what their classes would be like, Quidditch, and brooms.

Once I'd managed to blurt out that my dad owned a broom shop, he forced me to talk about it so by the time Professor Dumbledore stood up to give his notices I thought I might just have found an unlikely friend in Luke - unlikely because he was one of the most outgoing people I'd ever met.

Further up the table a girl called Luna Lovegood was telling a fourth-year about something called Nargles and three of the other first-years - Callum, Oscar and Titus - were throwing an apple around. Next to me, May was chatting with Margaret and Georgie, the other girls who I would be sharing a dorm with, and the last addition to Ravenclaw, Ben Humphrey had joined in my conversation about racing brooms with Luke.

After Quidditch tryout announcements (and a sharp reminder that first-years were neither allowed to try out or bring any form of broom to Hogwarts), Laura and Penelope (Luke's sister) lead us up the swinging staircases to the Ravenclaw Tower. Luke was still grumbling about Harry Potter had started as Seeker for Gryffindor in _his_ first year when we stopped at an elegant oak door with an intricate bronze eagle knocker. Both doorknob and keyhole where absent.

'This is the entrance to the Ravenclaw common room,' Penelope explained. 'When you wish to enter, the door will ask you a question and you must answer it correctly before it will open.' Luke rolled his eyes at his sister beside me.

'What if we don't know the answer?' Margaret asked as Penelope cast a stern look at her brother.

'Then you'll have to wait until someone who does know the answer comes along.' Half of the group moaned; the rest of us stopped ourselves. 'And then you will have learned something, won't you?' I shrugged - it made sense, as Ravenclaw was all about gaining knowledge. Still, I resolved to reread each of my textbooks and visit the library (even though I had already planned to) as soon as possible so I wouldn't find myself stuck outside the common room.

'Here we go,' Laura stepped forward to the door and waited patiently for it to ask its question.

'What is a Patronus made of?' I had to clap my hand over my mouth to stop the involuntary gasp as the bronze eagle opened its beak and the words flowed from what had appeared to be inanimate metal. The question completely stumped me, and evidently my fellow first-years as well, going by the frowns and clueless looks on their faces.

'In its purest form, a Patronus is a magical manifestation of joy and hope,' Laura replied after a moment's thought and I gaped at her. I obviously had a lot to learn at Hogwarts.

'Very poetic.' The bird resumed its previous frozen pose and the wooden door swung open to reveal a huge circular room with dark blue carpet and a domed ceiling covered in meticulously painted stars. Wooden supports arched down from the ceiling and between each was a tall rectangular window which curved inwards at its sides to taper to a point.

Every inch of the walls were covered with Ravenclaw hangings, window seats and towering, grand bookshelves. Armchairs, huge cushions and small tables were arranged neatly throughout the room, and on the far wall there was an alcove with a regal white marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw herself.

Penelope and Laura told us that we could study or just relax in the common room at any time, and then led us over the the alcove. Thomas Jarvey, the other fifth-year prefect, loped towards the girls and after saying hello to Laura he opened a subtly disguised door on the right of Ravenclaw's statue and ushered the boys up into their dormitory. The rest of us followed Laura through the other door and up another staircase to the girls' dorms while Penelope left for the Head Boy and Girl's private rooms.

We passed six other identical doors before coming to our own. Laura left us to unpack our trunks - which had been sent up for us already - and went into her own dormitory. As we sorted our clothes, the other girls chatted and I joined in occasionally, still shy as I didn't know them very well.

They all seemed very nice but extremely different - Margaret had evidently memorised the entirety of our textbooks already; Georgie admitted that she'd never been able to sit still long enough to read very much and hoped that if she listened in class it would be enough; May apparently hadn't done any study whatsoever but I had an inkling that she didn't need to; and Luna knew a lot about many mythical creatures that Margaret - or Maggie as she preferred to be called - claimed rather worriedly didn't exist.

All in all, we were a pretty average bunch; not entirely what the other houses would expect of us, but true Ravenclaws none the less.

I had just about convinced myself that this year was going to be much less eventful that my sister's first year (and thank goodness for that!) when a giggling third year with reddish-blonde hair burst into our dorm and announced that two utterly stupid Gryffindor second years, Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, had flown an enchanted car to school.

All I could think was, _not them again_.


	2. Wings of Hope

CHAPTER ONE - _Wings of Hope_

I slid open the door of an empty compartment and dragged my trunk in behind me as the floor moved beneath my feet. The Hogwarts Express left Platform 9 3/4 and I waved goodbye to my parents for the sixteenth time since starting at the school of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

I remember the first time I sat on this train, eagerly anticipating the year ahead. Then, my Sorting into Ravenclaw, meeting May, Georgie, Maggie, Luna and Luke. My absolute disgust at learning that Harry Potter and Ron Weasley had flown a car from the Platform to school in the plain sight of Muggles. And to think I thought the events of that year - the reopening of the Chamber of Secrets - were the worst thing that could possibly happen at Hogwarts.

Once the train reached a constant speed I stood up and eyed the baggage racks overhead, trying to figure out the best way to get my trunk up there with my miserable strength. I wasn't sure if I was allowed to use magic quite yet as the train was barely out of the station, but I needed to clear some room for the rest of my Ravenclaw friends.

Of course, I thought each year after my first to be equally or even more terrible. But this year was to be the darkest of them all, and I feared that before my first year of NEWTs ended the wizarding world would be irrevocably changed.

I took a deep breath and heaved my trunk upwards, but the momentum wasn't enough and I had to crumple out of the way of the plummeting case. Turns out carrying piles of ancient books doesn't quite give you enough of a workout to be able to lift up your trunk. Maybe that's because I had packed approximately four piles of books with a few clothes thrown in as well.

Besides, Dumbledore was no longer: no longer our Headmaster, no longer the only one He ever feared, no longer a guiding light in our dark times. And yet we could not call it war, for few were fighting. The enemy was cunning, but I knew He was out there. And with Dumbledore gone, who knew how Hogwarts would fare.

'You're looking serious, little bird,' I looked up at the sound of the pet name only one person used to see a tall gangly boy with erratic sandy blonde hair push the glass door to the side and gracefully swing his trunk onto the seat across from me. Luke.

'Just – arghh – don't – why can I never seem to do the simplest things properly?' I whined as he tried to stop himself from laughing at the way I was sprawled over the seat and dribbling over onto the floor. When he finally got himself under control after a few (failed) attempts by me to pull myself into a sitting position, he walked over and helped me up from under my deadly trunk and his face softened.

'There we go,' he grinned as we heaved first mine and then his trunk up onto the racks together.

'Thanks.' I gave him a small smile in return.

We sat ourselves next to the window - which was already beginning to frost up in the first day of England's frigid winter - and left room for Maggie and Georgie when they finally decided to arrive.

It was unusual for Maggie to be late, as she was definitely the most organised, stereotypical 'Ravenclaw' of us all. The only reason I could think of was that she'd already cornered one of the Professors to discuss her OWL results and what it would mean for her numerous NEWT classes.

As for Georgie, I hardly expected her to be here as she was most likely collecting all the news and gossip from the holidays (and considering that the Wizarding World was practically in a state of unofficial terror, there would be mounds of it). Naturally, she'd already squeezed every tidbit of information out of Luke, Maggie and I via owl (her owl, Marple, had the rather annoying habit of sitting on your shoulder and refusing to deliver your reply unless it was judged to be sufficiently long).

And of course, no-one was waiting on May.

'Sickle for your thoughts?' Luke leaned forward on his armrest.

'... Just thinking about Georgie and her letters,' I replied after a second.

'The infamous Miss Marple? I nearly lost a finger to that bird when George found out from the Daily Prophet that Penny had been promoted.' He rolled his eyes and waggled his right hand in front of me.

'What's your sister doing now, again?' I asked, knowing fully well that Luke was proud of his elder sister even if he expressed it through endless teasing of the brand that only younger brothers seemed to exhibit from birth.

'Oh, you know, just doing whatever the Senior Ambassador to Lithuania does,' he smirked and then his lips thinned. 'Which isn't much in the current situation really.' I looked worriedly at my usually-cheerful friend. Working in the Ministry wasn't the safest place to be right now, especially for a half-blood.

'I guess your parents are glad she didn't decide to become an Auror, after all,' I clutched weakly at the small comforts I could find amongst all the fear and trepidation. Luke just nodded grimly.

I was struggling for something to say that would lift the mood when Maggie and Georgie walked into the compartment, trunks in tow.

'Hey Mags, George,' Luke greeted each of them with a determined upbeat attitude and threw their cases onto the luggage rack. 'What held you up?' The pair sat down opposite us and I noticed that Georgie was more subdued that usual. Maggie didn't seem any different, but then again she was always more reserved and tended to turn her emotions inward.

'I ... had a meeting,' Maggie said quietly. 'A prefects' meeting.'

'You're prefect,' Luke breathed. Of course - May had been the female Ravenclaw prefect in our year, but as a Muggleborn she was no longer allowed to attend Hogwarts under You-Know-Who's regime.

'It feels – wrong,' Maggie bit her lip and pulled the shiny badge out from the pocket of her jacket. 'They're acting like she never even existed.' We sat in silence for a few seconds.

'How'd your OWL results go?' It was Georgie who brought up the topic, and I flushed slightly as I realised I was so preoccupied with my own self-absorption that I completely forgot to ask Luke how his exam results had been. Although I thought that I'd be absolutely petrified about the arrival of the Hogwarts owl which carried my scores, in the end I was simply relieved that they came at all, what with the Minister being assassinated mere days later.

Maggie, of course, had done exceptionally, with seven 'Outstanding's and two 'Exceeds Expectations', in Defence and Transfiguration. Luke had only failed Divination and History of Magic (both subjects which he had hated in the first place) and the rest Es with an O in Defence. Georgie's results were more similar to mine, mostly Es with a few As, but she had an O in Defence and Care of Magical Creatures. I hadn't received any Os, but fortunately my grades were high enough to do all the subjects I wanted to for NEWTs.

'May got nine Outstandings,' Maggie said bitterly. 'Nine! And they won't even let her stay in the country.'

'We're not going to forget her,' I said, not quite sure where I was finding the words. I never really had anything to contribute to our group: Maggie was our walking encyclopedia, Georgie our duelling expert and Luke the sporty attractive one (though I never would have said that to his face or his ego would surely make his head explode).

'We know she's safe with her family – she got out in time.' Rumours were already going around that groups of 'Snatchers' were running around England, rounding up anyone who wasn't on their list of pure- or half-bloods. The Sunnerlings had fled to America as soon as May realised that she and her family might be targeted by Death Eaters. Fortunately for her, she had managed to convince her parents swiftly where other muggle-borns failed.

'What if – what if there was something we could do, to show we don't abide by their rules?' Georgie began hesitantly.

'What are you suggesting, Georgie?' Maggie leaned forward. Luke had a wistful, slightly mischievous grin on his face and I cringed internally at the thought of such open rebellion.

'I – ' The annoying thing about courage is that, a lot of the time, it's very spur-of-the-moment. Which meant Georgie probably didn't have any type of concrete plan. Maggie's brain was working overtime, however.

'We're not going become another Dumbledore's Army,' Maggie said firmly. 'We're Ravenclaws - cunning like Slytherin and confident like Gryffindor, but smarter. More organised, logical and _successful_.' She stressed the last word, and I knew with Maggie's planning she was never going to let us get caught. 'We won't do anything that has the slightest possibility of implicating us. We'll never be there when our plans play out. We'll be invisible, but what we'll do won't be.' Her ideas of anonymity and caution did something to make the plan more appealing to me.

'So you're saying ...' Luke prompted.

'Anonymous messages in the hallways. Pranks on students that support Him. Make people laugh,' I brainstormed to the surprise of everyone else.

'We're a message of hope,' Maggie summarised. 'The dove with the olive sprig.' Luke chortled and we all stared at him. 'What?'

'Nothing, I mean,' a mischievous grin crept onto his face. 'I've got a name. A group name.' I had a feeling I wasn't going to like what he said.

'Yeah!' Georgie held her wand in front of her face in an Auror-like pose. 'The 'Claws – defenders of Hogwarts!' I spluttered in laughter at her dramatic tone.

'We don't want to label ourselves, though,' Maggie said diplomatically. 'Something more subtle, less ... Ravenclaw.' The two girls turned to Luke, and I joined them reluctantly.

'We are,' he spread his arms dramatically, 'the Wings of Hope.' Luke's eyes found mine. _Like it, little bird?_ I could almost hear him thinking. I crossed my arms.

This was me, completely and totally not liking.

* * *

The compartment was deathly quiet when a mass of spectral black smoke swept past the window, making the glass rattle.

'What was that?' Georgie pressed her face up to the pane as I recoiled from the sudden sound.

'Nothing good,' Maggie grimaced. 'Death Eater, most probably. Possibly Dementors, but unlikely.'

I shivered and clutched at Luke's arm, terrified at the prospect of You-Know-Who's cronies boarding or even attacking the Hogwarts Express. As countless horrible scenarios played out in my mind, the train screeched to a solemn halt and the raucous laughter and sounds of general teenage rowdiness ceased, plunging the entire carriage into silence.

'Merlin,' I breathed. 'W-what are we going to do?' I looked to my friends, ever the resourceful ones, for a solution to the problem posed to us. As if it were just another Arithmancy puzzle for them to crack.

'Stay still,' Luke said finally, as neither of the others was forthcoming. 'Don't say anything.'

I quickly scooted closer to him and wrapped an arm around his waist as he slid his arm over my shoulders. Georgie hid her wand in a hand looped over Maggie's back, and the newly-instated prefect concealed her wand in the folds of her dark school robes. Their spare hands were clenched tightly together, skin taught and knuckles white.

I had to force a hand over my mouth to muffle a yelp as there was a thud of wood on wood and slow, menacing footsteps began to sound down the length of the carriage. Later I would ask myself how footsteps could possibly be menacing - all I could say in reply was that they were. Loud, clear, echoing and so slow, slow and measured and terrifying. But not nearly as terrifying as what came next.

A Death Eater, complete with swishing ebony black robes and expressionless mask, came striding past our compartment. Turning towards us, the black gaps where eyes should have been bored into each Ravenclaw. Had my entire body not been so on edge, I would have shivered. I would have collapsed, I would have cried, I would have curled up into a ball and convinced myself to disappear. But I was stuck, frozen in the moment. They had killed my family.

Uncles, aunts, grandparents; cousins who had been so young, killed in both Wizarding Wars for defying Him. The entire Bones family gone, save for my parents, my sister and I.

Two more figures swept past, their robes swirling around their feet. None of us moved, barely dared breathe until the wind whistled furiously outside and then Hogwarts Express rolled sombrely on towards a castle that I'd once deemed the safest place on earth.

'M-M-Merlin,' I whispered as wheels clicked and clacked rhythmically beneath us. I kept a tight grip on Luke and began to shake as Maggie leapt up and rifled through her trunk.

'What – no, here it is,' she said firmly and pulled out of slab of something wrapped in brightly-coloured foil. 'Chocolate. I know they say it's for Dementors attacks, but ... '

'Death Eaters are pretty much the same thing,' Georgie voiced what we'd all been thinking.

Maggie distributed the sugary food among us, making sure we each had more than we could possibly stomach, and I took a small bite. It was no miracle cure, but I felt much less shaky and weak as the chocolate melted to a creamy mess in my mouth.

'The Wings of Hope are definitely not getting caught,' Luke said after he'd swallowed the last of his Honeydukes confectionery (I still had over half of mine to go - how on earth could he eat so much, and so quickly?).

'I promise,' Maggie looked us all in the eye seriously. 'Ravenclaws won't be caged.'

I was beginning to appreciate just how brave those three crazy Gryffindors on the run were. They were going up against Death Eaters, Aurors, the entire Ministry of Magic and Him - alone. Suddenly I felt very insignificant and weak.

But maybe – _maybe_ – I could change that. The Wings of Hope could change that.


	3. The Serpent's Lair

CHAPTER TWO - _The Serpent's Lair_

I tried not to look, but my eyes were irrevocably drawn to the skeletal creatures standing listlessly in front of the black carriage. I'd tried to pretend they weren't there ever since I saw them in the first term of my fifth year. Luna noticed, though, and told me that it was because I'd experienced death that they were visible to me.

Basically, my aunt's murder allowed me to see the Thestrals - great, just what I needed to help deal with the grief. Creepy ghost horses.

Maggie and Georgie climbed in first and Luke rested his hand reassuringly on my shoulder as we joined them. We sat there for a few seconds and then Luna walked up to our carriage with Ginny Weasley and a seventh year Gryffindor, Neville Longbottom.

'Hi, Luna,' Luke said when the others sat in their seats, tight-lipped. Maggie, May and Georgie used to always talk about Luna behind her back and sometimes even when they knew she could hear. I never liked it when they did it, but I guess the reason I wasn't a Gryffindor was because I was too shy and scared to say anything, as was the case now.

'Hello, Luke,' Luna replied in her usual dreamy tone. 'You're looking well. Have you been using Plimpy juice? Daddy says it's very good for the complexion.' Not sharing a dormitory with her, Luke wasn't quite as accustomed to Luna's often utterly strange statements, and mumbled something unintelligible before turning to Neville.

'I don't believe we've met,' he said, extending his hand, which the Gryffindor boy shook after a moment's clumsiness. 'Of course, we all know of you, but we've never been introduced. I'm Luke Clearwater.'

'Neville Longbottom,' Neville's voice sounded steely and his face hardened. 'So you read the Prophet, then.' It wasn't a question.

'Sometimes it pays to read the local propaganda,' Maggie quipped, defending Luke.

'Neville didn't mean to offend you,' Ginny joined the conversation, shooting her friend a look. 'We've just had bad experiences with people who actually believe the rubbish they print.' My friends were stony for a second and then Luke nodded sympathetically.

'I can imagine the trouble Skeeter and her cronies have caused you,' he looked straight at Neville.

'Anyway Neville, this is Georgie Watkins, Delia Bones and Maggie Connaghey - Ravenclaw prefect?' Ginny's voice rose questioningly as she took in the badge on Maggie's robes.

'May wasn't allowed to come back, so it went to me,' the newly instated prefect said bitterly. 'May used to be prefect, but she's a muggleborn. She and her family are in America now.'

The clarification was for Neville's benefit: the rest of us sixth-years knew about her situation, even Ginny as a Gryffindor.

'I guess they'll have to give out both the seventh year prefect badges for Gryffindor,' Neville mused. 'Ron and Hermione weren't on the train – not that it's a big surprise,' he added.

'You would have got it if McGonagall had anything to do with it,' Ginny said.

'Yeah, well obviously You-Know-Who's got to Hogwarts as well,' Neville replied matter-of-factly. 'I'll bet a hundred galleons the Head Boy and Girl aren't in Gryffindor.' I grimaced.

'It's Ernie Macmillan and Padma Patil,' Maggie informed them. Of course she'd known - she would have met all of the prefects at the meeting on the Hogwarts Express.

'Well Draco's ditched, and he couldn't very well give it to Pansy, Hannah's not exactly Head Girl material and Anthony Goldstein's a bit reclusive so they're the only ones left,' Ginny shrugged.

'It's a bit sad, isn't it?' I blurted out after a moment and wished I could take the words back - now they were all looking at me! I felt like curling up into a ball and disappearing.

'What?' Georgie had a slightly confused yet intrigued look on her face.

'How much it's changing,' I expanded on my previous statement (albeit reluctantly). 'I mean, up until last term just about everyone in the school would have picked Hermione Granger for Head Girl,' I subtly drew in a deep breath – my hands were shaking as if my body was reminding me that as a certified introvert I was not allowed to make assumptions like these. What if I was wrong about what everyone else thought? But to my relief the others nodded in agreement - phew. 'And I'm not sure about Head Boy but Ernie definitely wouldn't have been the only logical choice at that point, either.'

'Yeah, Hermione should be wearing that badge,' Neville shook his head disappointedly.

'I suppose Draco might have been another option,' Ginny added thoughtfully and Neville snorted with a hint of derision. 'He's not a terrible leader - he had almost all of Slytherin under his thumb,' she pointed out. 'And though I hate to admit it, my brother might have even had more than a minuscule chance. He's grown up a lot,' she ended pensively.

'Exactly,' I said, getting back into my line of thought. 'People who should be here – who should be leading us – can't, because of You-Know-Who and his followers.' I looked sideways at my friends questioningly, and once they realised what I wanted, Maggie and Luke nodded while Georgie gave me a not-so-subtle thumbs-up. 'We,' I indicated my fellow Ravenclaws and paused, 'don't agree with what's happening. We ... We want to show that taking away our brightest won't weaken us. But I'm not a fighter,' my voice dropped. 'We're not planning to make another Army like yours. We don't want anyone to know who we are. We're just a message,' I explained to the silent carriage.

'The Wings of Hope,' Luke added with a perfectly straight face, and I glared at him.

'That's ... smart.' Neville's eyebrows were halfway up his forehead. I smirked internally at his observation. They were Ravenclaws – of course my friends came up with smart plans.

'Oh, oh!' Georgie exclaimed suddenly. 'We could be, like, your backup!' All eyes moved to her.

'As in, the DA's backup?' Ginny asked for clarification.

'Yeah.' We sat, contemplating the alliance.

'I think it's a good idea,' Luke offered. 'If you don't mind me saying, you're a little low on masterminds in the DA and we have plenty here.' We laughed at his banter, but the suggestion was serious.

'I agree,' Neville's eyes met Luke's. 'What would you suggest your group does?' This time, Maggie spoke up.

'We target the propaganda, set up for any ... escapades you may have, and do research.' Ginny frowned.

'Research?'

'New spells, patrol timetables, theory stuff,' Maggie listed and the Thestrals began to slow down.

'I don't suppose we can start talking suddenly at school, it'll look too suspicious,' Ginny said carefully.

'No, you're right,' I said. If the rumours were true, You-Know-Who had placed people within Hogwarts and they'd certainly be eager to stomp out any early rebellion. Mass inter-house communication would be a huge beacon that something was going on.

'We won't have many classes together, either,' I mused. Even though NEWT classes mixed the houses up, the large subjects like Transfiguration and Charms usually had more than one class to compensate for timetable clashes.

'No, and that won't be a good time to talk anyway,' Ginny said. 'I've got another suggestion.' She looked at Luna and we all followed.

'Luna's in our dorm,' Maggie realised. 'And she normally hangs out with you guys.'

'That's right,' Ginny replied. 'Luna, would you be our messenger?' The blonde girl jerked her gaze away from something to the left of me – Luke? A Blubbering Humdinger in the trees? – to answer Ginny's question, and I wondered if she even had any idea what we'd been talking about.

'That sounds very exciting,' she said, and I did believe she was being entirely serious. 'The messenger ...' Neville squirmed uncomfortably but Ginny smiled - she didn't seem to mind Luna's quirks as much as most of Hogwarts' population.

'Okay, that's sorted,' Ginny concluded and snuck a glance at the gates to the castle again, where an unfamiliar professor was standing ominously. 'Now, what Quidditch teams do you all support again?' Everyone looked at her strangely for changing the subject so quickly, but I realised that we needed to appear as if we were talking about perfectly innocent things before anyone less trustworthy listened in on our conversation.

'Montrose Magpies,' I replied to Ginny's question. 'Best team in the league by far.' Eventually the others caught on and we continued talk about Quidditch all the way up the rest of the ride to the castle.

* * *

The year definitely did not get off to a good start when nearly every student did a double take as they clamoured into the Great Hall and saw none other than Severus Snape seated in the Headmaster's chair.

My blue-clad fellow students around me began whispering furiously, true to their house as always. Older Hufflepuffs rushed to comfort the terrified second- and third-years, some of whom were biting back sobs and clutching their wobbling knees as they realised that they were now at the mercy of the school's most horrific professor.

A seventh-year Gryffindor boy stared murderously at our new Headmaster, wand in hand twitching before Neville stepped forward and clapped the boy firmly on the shoulder, whispering something in his ear which turned the furious smoulder into a determined grin.

And me? My teeth were chattering, legs shaking as my heart pumped thunderously through my ear and the blood drained out of my face, but none of it was because of Snape. My eyes were fixed on the two new professors dressed in black robes, hoods now flicked back to reveal pallid faces. I knew them by sight - Alecto and Amycus Carrow, twin Death Eaters and sick, torturous people. Just like the criminals who took my aunt, uncle and cousin's lives in the last war, and like their master who personally murdered Aunty Amelia just a year ago.

I was still in shock when the remains of dessert disappeared from the long tables, despite my friends' efforts to force some food into me and slow the adrenaline pumping through my veins. The uncontrollable shivering stopped for a little, but every now and then I had to clutch my knee to keep it from jiggling erratically.

Had Luke not been there to calm me down I most certainly would have fled when Snape introduced the Carrows, but thankfully I struggled through dinner and now could escape to the safety of the Ravenclaw Tower.

As soon as we were dismissed I leapt up and grabbed Luke's hand, on a mission to get as far away from the Death Eaters as possible. I was suddenly glad for my twitchiness as my muscles sprung into action once we'd rounded the corner and I clambered up the stairs, leaving even Luke with his impossibly long legs behind. Reaching the top of the tower, I skidded to a stop in front of the familiar, homely door knocker, breathing hard.

'What knowledge must one acquire before Untransfiguring any object?' The brass eagle sprung to life, its beak clicking quietly as the words fluttered gently out, soothing my wrecked nerves with lilting tones. I barely registered Luke as he cleared the last three steps with a huge leap and stood tall and comfortingly beside me. I wracked my brains for the answer - I absolutely had to get in otherwise I thought I would break apart right there on the landing.

'What ... What the object was prior to Transfiguration,' I hit on the answer finally and nearly cried with relief as the door swung open to reveal the cosy book-laden common room. I dashed madly inside, racing to a one of the more subtle hidden nooks behind the Care of Magical Creatures bookcase and collapsed into the pile of cushions scattered about the corner seat.

'Delia,' Luke found me lying haphazardly against the smooth stone wall and slid carefully in next to me.

'Luke,' I sighed, my lip wobbling. It was ridiculous - I was only eight months shy of coming of age and yet I felt the overwhelming urge to cry behind the shelf in our common room. I could see from his face that Luke was uneasy. Neither Georgie, Maggie, May nor I had ever been overly emotional and the other girls tended to find consolation in each other. I'd never cried in front of Luke before (sulked, definitely but that was very different), and he certainly didn't have much experience with crying girls, despite his quite substantial list of ex-girlfriends.

However, being the caring friend he was he leaned over and pulled a blanket around me, tucking the edges under to keep the cold draughts of wind out.

'It – it's okay, little bird,' he gulped. 'We'll just sit here until you're ready.' His endearing awkwardness coupled with such sincerity was enough to tip me over the edge and the tears rolled out, puffing up my eyes within seconds. I turned on my side to face him, curling up in a foetal position and let him stroke my hair as I attempted to make my horrendous sniffs not quite as loud as a snorting elephant.

'Th-thank you, Luke,' I croaked pathetically in between sobs, but he just shushed me (most likely because I sounded like a dragon pox patient) and I let myself wallow in misery for a bit longer.

A while later I finally managed to get all the crying out of my system and I sat up and hugged my friend, being careful not to get any of the gross whatever-it-was on my face on his robes.

'Hey,' he said softly and wrapped his arms around me protectively.

'It's all over now,' I replied, glad that my voice box had recovered reasonably well from its dragon pox-like state. 'I've got it all out.' Luke just flashed me a tiny grin and ruffled my hair.

'Good for you, Delia,' he said firmly. 'You really need to take care of yourself sometimes, you know?' I shook my head and rolled my eyes at him.

'I'll be okay,' I sniffed once. 'Just got to avoid them, get used to it all.' I stood up, the wooly blanket still wrapped around my shoulders.

'Uh, little bird,' Luke began but I blinked slowly before planting a kiss on his cheek. I was emotionally exhausted, and even talking with my best friend used up energy that I, as an introvert, simply didn't have any more of.

'Thank you,' I whispered and tugged the blanket up to my chin as I straightened up. 'And I'm sorry but I'm really, really tired now, so tell me tomorrow?' I widened my eyes hopefully at him until he nodded, and headed up to my dorm, waving my wand lethargically to change my clothes as I went. With a lazy cleaning charm on my mouth as I reached my four-poster bed, I sank into the mattress cocooned in Luke's blanket and fell into merciful sleep.


End file.
